Cashew Chicken Curry

The Recipe: A chicken curry reminiscent of London’s curbside curry take-away, one of my very favorite things to go-crazy for in London. (It's been too-too long!) Cashew Chicken Curry is surprisingly healthy and oh-so satisfying. Best of all? It's made with pantry ingredients, check you just might have all the ingredients on hand this very minute!

True Story: One day my neighbor reported that when he and his wife were at the grocery getting ingredients for Cashew Chicken Curry, someone else was also pulling cashews from the shelf. In a flash, they realized they were planning the same supper – because they both were holding the recipe, both had clipped it from the local newspaper!

First published in 2006, updated and republished in 2015 for a little weekend cooking inspiration. If there's a January Thaw in your weekend, this would be perfect!

COMPLIMENTS! "... So good!" ~ Meryl "It is SOO GOOD!!" ~ Rass "... so yummy...one of the best curries I have ever had!!" ~ Pixie "The flavors perfectly complemented each other with no one taste overpowering the other. " ~ Lynessa "I made this tonight [for my dad] ... he really liked it!" ~ Anonymous

You fear that beady eyes and coarse whiskers will appear on the family, friends and neighbors so frequently enlisted as guinea pigs.

You slavishly follow the camera-before-consumption rule, so only leftovers are eaten while actually hot.

You become obsessive-compulsive about roasting chickens with unexpected ingredients (I dunno, how ‘bout Jim Beam?) and vegetables from okra to cabbage and spices from oregano to curry.

Curry? Yes, curried chicken was last year’s food obsession, thanks to an inspirational starter recipe. This CASHEW CHICKEN CURRY is the dozenth version and darned close to the curbside take-aways that make London the curry capital of the world.

As for 2006, anyone for lamb, you know, lamb curry?

ALANNA's TIPS If your family is new to curry or you cook for someone who finds "spicy" sweat-invoking, start off with the smaller amounts of curry powder, cumin and cayenne. That said, don’t be too fearful of the larger amounts for the heat is moderated when the curry is served atop bland rice. Chicken thighs are more flavorful than breasts but only 10% higher in fat. They're my choice, almost every time! In a pinch, peanut butter can be substituted for cashews. Non-fat yogurt and light coconut milk reduce the calories in this dish, so much flavor for so few calories! But the full-fat versions work too, the dish just becomes slightly richer. Either way, so good! Curries improve overnight so don’t hesitate to make ahead or plan for leftovers. I usually serve Cashew Chicken Curry with Oven-Baked Brown Rice. The timing works out perfectly: put the rice in the oven, when it's done, the curry will be too!

CASHEW CHICKEN CURRY

Reminiscent of London’s curbside curry take-away

Hands-on time: 35 minutes
Time-to-table: 90 minutes
Makes 11 cups

1 tablespoon butter

1 large onion, diced

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger

1 – 3 tablespoons curry powder (see ALANNA’s TIPS)

1/2 - 1 teaspoon cumin

1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 pound chicken thighs or breasts, cut in bite-size pieces (see TIPS)

29 ounces canned diced tomato

1 pound carrots, diced

8 ounces sliced mushrooms

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1/4 cup ground cashews

1 cup nonfat yogurt

1/2 cup light coconut milk

8 ounces frozen peas

Additional fresh cilantro, for garnish

Melt the butter in a Dutch oven on medium high. Add the onion, garlic and ginger and cook until soft. Stir in the spices and cook briefly. Add the meat in batches, cooking each one through. Add the tomatoes, carrots, mushrooms and cilantro and bring to a boil.

Cover, reduce heat to maintain a slow simmer and cook for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. (Stop here if you’re cooking ahead.) Stir in remaining ingredients and heat through but do not boil, about 5 minutes.

Kitchen Parade is written by second-generation food columnist Alanna Kellogg and features fresh, seasonal dishes for every-day healthful eating and occasional indulgences. Do you have a favorite recipe that other Kitchen Parade readers might like? Just send me a quick e-mail via recipes@kitchen-parade.com. How to print a Kitchen Parade recipe. Never miss a recipe! If you like this recipe, sign up for a free e-mail subscription. If you like Kitchen Parade, you're sure to like my food blog about vegetable recipes, too, A Veggie Venture. Follow Kitchen Parade on Facebook!

Rass made the chicken Cashew Curry the first day it came through on the internet. Half the recipe which we cleaned up in two meals. Then he made it again using beef instead of chicken and we didn't have enough left for a second dinner. He'll be doing it again soon to use up the coconut milk. So good!

A further note on the Chicken Curry. Rass was telling some friends about the dish and took a copy of the recipe to Happy Hour where it went around their table and he had to come home and run another copy.

Alanna, Thank you sooo much for this recipe! The flavors perfectly complemented each other with no one taste overpowering the other. I was worried it was just going to taste like vegetable soup when I looked in the pot but after the yogurt and coconut milk, I was pleasantly suprised! All the veggies added wonderful texture. We used TJ natural PB instead of the cashews. Thanks for making WW easier for us!

This looks delicious, especially for this time of year in the midwest! Any way to omit the dairy from this recipe? I'm guessing I can sub an oil for the butter, but what about the yogurt? Could I use 1 or 1.5 cups (instead of .5 cups) of coconut milk, or maybe use the full-fat coconut milk instead of the lite version? Thanks!

M ~ Hmm, let me think a minute. Yes, oil for butter, no problem. As for the yogurt, it helps 'tamp down' the heat of the curry in a way I don't think coconut milk would without overpowering with coconut flavor. I'd be inclined to omit the yogurt, but dial back the ginger and curry.

PS This is such a great recipe, M, if it appeals to you, it really is working on a dairy-free version that works for you. I'm hungry for it NOW!

Would I be able to make this in the crock pot? I am trying to find recipes that a) don't involve pre-cooking certain ingredients and b) aren't chilis that I can put in the crock pot to have a meal to come home to after 12 hours. I've tried adapting other recipes to the crock pot with varied success, so I thought I'd ask before potentially ruining a dinner. I'm just beginning to learn about the required adaptations for making a traditionally-cooked-on-the-stove meal in a crock pot.

Hi Ellen, Yes I think this would be a crockpot meal but I'm not excited about just dumping all the ingredients into the pot, at least for this recipe. That's because curry is all about building layers of flavor. These are the recipes that I've adapted for the slow cooker, look for more this winter, I'm newly inspired!

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Thank you for taking a moment to write! I read each and every comment, for each and every recipe. If you have a specific question, it's nearly always answered quick-quick. But I also love hearing your reactions, your curiosity, even your concerns! When you've made a recipe, I especially love to know how it turned out, what variations you made, what you'll do differently the next time. ~ Alanna